It was morning when Suzan Vitale's daughter saw a man in a light blue pickup truck park in front of her, get out of his car and start walking toward her while she was waiting for the bus.

"She said he was carrying something in is hand ... maybe a piece of wood," said Vitale, a Clarkston resident. "She got up and started walking backwards as he continued toward her."

Vitale said she dropped her 9-year-old -- who will remain anonymous, per her family's requests -- at the stop five minutes early.

Her daughter was waiting at the bus stop Wednesday in the Deer Valley subdivision near I-75 and M-15.

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The school, Independence Elementary, sits just a mile from her bus stop, Vitale said.

Thankfully, the bus driver, "Mrs. Floyd," she said, pulled up to the bus stop before the man got closer to her daughter.

According to Vitale's daughter, the truck followed the bus for two stops before, then disappeared.

"I usually deliver my daughter directly to the bus, but I didn't wait Wednesday," she said.

As she was driving, she called her the elementary school to make sure her daughter had gotten there safely. When it turned out her daughter was in class, she arrived at work relieved.

She said it wasn't until her daughter walked home -- again -- from the bus stop that she got the full story.

Apparently, it had happened once before. The 9-year-old said she had seen the same man at her bus stop a month before.

"She said the man had 'locked eyes' with her," said Vitale.

She immediately contacted Sheriff's deputies at the Independence Township substation, who flooded the area, according to Oakland County authorities.

Vitale said she also sent a warning email to her neighbors, her daughter's teachers, and the elementary school's principal.

"We're a close knit little neighborhood," said Vitale, "It's scary to realize anyone is at risk."

She said she checked the Michigan sex offender registry and was shocked that hundreds of people listed were located in the Clarkston area.

"Of course, it's scary when something like this happens so close to you," said Vitale.

On Thursday morning, patrol cars were on either side of the bus.

"It brought me to tears," she said. "I'm so thankful to the police for their presence."

The Oakland County Sheriff's Office continues to investigate the incident. Deputies say the man is between 50 and 60 years old and was last seen wearing a Detroit Tigers baseball hat, a gray sweatshirt and blue jeans.

"We're doing our due diligence on this incident," said Undersheriff Mike McCabe. "We have two full time liaison officers following up with the bus driver, the little girl, her family and school officials."

The Undersheriff reminds all children that if they see something they don't think is right, they should notify officials immediately.